PI is a worldwide leading supplier of solutions in the fields of motion and positioning.
PI does not only develop and produce a broad range of positioning stages and actuators for linear, rotary and vertical motion or combinations of different axes. PI also adapts those solutions to customer-specific applications or supplies finished subsystems for motion and positioning.

Select the product type specified by the axes of motion required. Selection of more criteria expands or shortens the list of results. Select more than one filter at a time, for example, to find positioning stages designed for higher load capacity, too.

PI’s multi-axis piezo flexure stages allow positioning and scanning with sub-nanometer precision in up to 6 axis, including tip, tilt and yaw motion. Versions range from most compact cube design to large aperture and low profile.

Piezo flexure stages and objective scanners of the PIFOC® and PInano® series offer high dynamics in positioning and scanning tasks. Well adapted solutions for XY specimen positioning parallel and vertical to the optical axis and Z focusing of the objective are available as standard products.

PI’s nanopositioning stages and scanners combine nanometer-precision resolution and guiding precision with minimum crosstalk. This makes them particularly suitable for reference applications in metrology, for microscopic processes, for interferometry or in inspection systems for semiconductor chip production.

The high stiffness of piezo flexure mirror platforms allows for high dynamics and excellent position stability. The compact devices are frequently used for beam deflection in laser processing and laser steering. Their parallel-kinematic design creates identical performance in tip and tilt axis, with a common fixed pivot point and no change of polarization direction.

Miniature stages are essential in positioning tasks where available space is limited. Piezomotor solutions like Q-motion, PIline® and PiezoWalk® allow for the most compact stages due to their direct drive principle.

Rotation stages with piezomotor make for particularly compact sizes. These compact rotation stages can be used in optics applications, where they position, for example, filters reliably and with excellent repeatability. Rotation stages can be mounted on linear stages without adapter and allow for flexible combinations of multi-axis positioning systems.

The smallest devices for 6 degrees of freedom are built from Q-motion piezomotor stages, but also palm-size BLDC motor versions are available. Best overall homogeneity of performance is achieved with the classic hexapod design. Low-profile design is preferred when relatively large tilting angles are required.

PI offers a wide range of motorized linear stages to supply high-precision industrial markets like semiconductor and photonics, as well as high-end research. Vacuum versions are available for a large number of different models. Multi-axis compositions can be set up with adapter brackets or specialized vertical stages and compatible rotation stages.

Stages with PIMag® Magnetic Direct-Drive Linear Motor. The friction-free magnetic direct drive principle allows for most dynamic stages. Compared with motor-spindle-based stages, they use fewer mechanical components which results in less friction and backlash and thus more precision.

Industrial applications in the production process such as laser processing benefit from the precise positioning accuracy of motorized positioning stages. Their low profile makes the variable stage series suitable for universal use, ranging from testing systems to production lines in precision automation.

Miniature stages are essential in positioning tasks where available space is limited. Piezomotor solutions like Q-motion, PIline® and PiezoWalk® allow for the most compact stages due to their direct drive principle.

Choose from the widest range of technologies the optimum for your special demands: Set-and-forget applications benefit from the specific features of piezomotors that provide excellent long-term stability, also for vacuum or nonmagnetic environments. Stepper and DC motor solutions are well-established and reliable for both industrial and research use.

The PiezoMike linear actuators offer the high resolution of piezo direct drives, high forces and absolutely stable positioning. This makes them ideal for set-and-forget applications with high precision requirements like the positioning of optical elements in a laser application.

Voice coil drives show very high velocities and allow for fast step-and-settle. Wear-free flexure guidings or mechanical guidings are available. The optional force control allows for stand-alone solutions in pressure-sensitive device testing.

PIezoMove actuators are flexure-guided and have strokes up to 1 mm. Being very compact, they can be easily integrated.
Generating forces of up to 10000 N and strokes of up to 100 µm are the characteristics of nanopositioning piezo actuators based on PICMA® multilayer piezos.

PiezoWalk® actuators are highly specialized piezobased drives intended for integration. Designed for use in the semiconductor industry, they boost on reliability, position resolution and long-term stability. Their special features include minimum size with high force generation. The drive itself is resistant to magnetic fields.

Stability, precision and dynamics are crucial in the application fields of PI’s XY stages. They are the basis of high throughput rates and reliable operation. PI makes use of own developments in the fields of PIMag® magnetic linear motors and PIglide air bearings. Industrial production and quality control benefit from PI’s high-load XY stages and planar scanners.

Hexapods provide 6 degrees of freedom in the most compact package. In combination with absolute measuring sensors, software and motion controllers that make the most complicated motion profiles easy to command, PI hexapods answer industrial requirements.

Precision components, stable control and a great deal of experience in engineering are essential for high-precision complex motion and positioning solutions. PI is a supplier of technologically sophisticated drive components and high-precision positioners and also offers all levels of integration for engineered subsystems.

The decision for a motion controller depends on the specific application situation. Various criteria, such as limited installation space, the number of axes or the type of control, determine which controller is the right one. PI offers a broad spectrum of controls and regulation concepts.

PI offers the broadest range of digital and analog piezo control concepts that are adapted for optimal result in every application. Calibration of all piezo systems is done before delivery and all systems are delivered ready for operation.

PI’s piezo drivers are available as benchtop or rackmount solutions, and as OEM modules also with separate power supply for minimized size. Piezo drivers integrate high-performance amplifiers specialized for different fields of applications.

PI develops motion control solutions in-house to best adjust the features to the requirements of both drive and application. PI’s motion controllers are generally designed as single-channel devices and are available as benchtop, rackmount or OEM versions.

Modular motion controller systems provide best flexibility for increasing the number of axes in a system. They allow the use of different drive types with only one user interface. The number of available models is continuously extended. Contact PI now for your individual controller setup!

As unique as the hexapod mechanics, the motion controller is designed to make parallel kinematics algorithms as easy and unnoticed by the user as possible: All target positions are commanded in Cartesian coordinates. For best integration in automation processes, the Hexapod motion controller is available with industrial EtherCAT interface.

Piezoelectric ultrasonic transducers are available in a wide range of shapes like disks, plates or tubes, and different performance levels. They can be adapted to application requirements by using different piezoceramic materials, electrodes, and assembling technology.

PI positioning systems are employed where technology is pushed forward in industry and research. This is done, for example, in semiconductor manufacturing, in medical engineering, in biotechnology, in plant engineering, in surface metrology, or in astronomy.

Because the need for multi-axis and also precision robots in production and quality processes is on the increase, industry is looking out for new types of robotics. PI offers parallel-kinematic hexapods for these tasks.

Lithographic processes are the reason why chips are getting smaller and smaller and why extremely fine structures can be realized on silicon wafers. Piezo drives have made these technical advances possible with their performance and reliability.

An automated assembly and alignment system can reduce the manufacturing process for silicon photonics to only a few minutes. However, handling the delicate waveguides is indeed a major challenge as the integration of the light sources at a wafer level and connection of the optical inputs and outputs are difficult to perform.

Progress in pharmaceutical research, diagnostics, and therapy requires high-performance and precise position systems. In addition to high positioning precision, requirements for the drives often include compact dimensions, low energy consumption, speed, and high reliability.

Efficiency has become an important buzzword these days. Materials research has paid a major contribution as the results have, for example, optimized processing methods. Methods such as X-rays and lasers or white light interferometry demand precise positioning of the specimens to be examined and of optics or beam control.

Positioning and motion tasks in industrial automation such as those in assembly, semiconductor manufacturing, mechanical engineering, laser material processing, inspection systems or in additive manufacturing demand solutions that need to be robust and reliable.

PI combines its long-term experience in micro and nanopositioning technology with in-depth knowledge in the fields of mechanics, electronics, sensor engineering, and software. Thus, PI is able to offer its customers the most advanced drive technologies and system solutions.

PI Ceramic offers a wealth of experience in the manufacturing of piezoceramic materials, components, and actuators. The piezoceramic materials can be adapted individually to perfectly fit the later use of the piezo components.

Depending on the configuration and control, piezoceramic actuators can be used to create translational motions or as motors with a virtually unlimited travel range. The choice of drive depends on the requirements of the application.

Rotating electric motors such as DC or stepper motors are used in connection with screw or worm drives. Stepper motor systems with high-resolution encoders can perform minimum incremental motions of 10 nm with high reliability and repeatability.

In a parallel-kinematic, multi-axis system, all actuators act directly on a single moving platform. This means that all axes can be designed with identical dynamic properties, thus reducing the moved mass considerably. Hexapods are used for moving and precision positioning, aligning and displacing loads in all six degrees of freedom, i.e., three linear and three rotational axes.

The linearity and repeatability achieved are not possible without highest-resolution measuring devices. Accuracies in the range of a few nanometers and below require a position measurement method that can also detect motion in this range.

PI uses incremental measurement systems for longer travel ranges, starting from approximately one millimeter. These sensors, which in most cases are optical sensors, achieve position resolution down to the picometer range.

Fast settling or extremely smooth low speed motion, high positional stability, high resolution and high dynamics – the requirements placed on piezo systems vary greatly and need drivers and controllers with a high degree of flexibility.

Fast USB or TCP/IP interfaces as well as RS-232 are the standard interfaces supported by modern digital controllers from PI. Furthermore, PI also provides digital or analog real-time capable interfaces.

Characteristic properties of piezo actuators include high feed forces and fast response. Since piezoelectric actuators react to even the smallest change in voltage with a motion, noise or drift in the control must be avoided.

Careful handling, adequate premises: PI does not only have the necessary equipment for the qualification of materials, components and final products, but also has many years of experience with regard to HV und UHV positioning systems.

PI stands for technical excellence and continuous advance in precision positioning – driven by the passion for technology and its use in customer applications. The target of the PI Group is to develop this market and technological leadership even further and therefore secure a decisive competitive advantage for its customers.

PI qualifies its products with external measuring equipment. These are calibrated in part and traceable to a national standard.
Using the PIOne incremental encoder and
capacitive sensors, PI manufactures own metrology for inclusion in PI products.

The product range from a two-ton hexapod to a ten-gram nanopositioner requires that PI can both manufacture and qualify these systems. For this reason, PI operates a heavy duty hall at its location in Karlsruhe for the assembly and measurement of masses up to five tons.

PI offers sound training in technical and business careers with a future. Pupils, students, graduates and professionals can get involved at PI and will be supported by us in their professional and personal further development.

Low-Noise and Drift-Free Piezo Amplifiers

The characteristic properties of piezo actuators include the generation of large forces and fast response. In electrical terms a piezo element corresponds to a capacitance. A rapid change to the operating voltage brings about a rapid displacement of the actuator and thus a change in position. When the control voltage suddenly increases, the piezo actuator can achieve its nominal displacement in only a few microseconds. A prerequisite for this is that the power supply provides sufficient current to charge the capacitance. For steady state operation, i.e., when holding a certain position, the stability of the power supply is crucial, as the piezoelectric actuators already respond with motion to the slightest voltage changes. Noise or drifting must therefore be avoided as far as possible.

Switched Amplifiers with Energy Recovery for Dynamic or Permanent Use

Applications with high load cycles exist, for example, in materials processing or in mechanical engineering during tool adjustment in milling and cutting machines. The actuators employed here operate with high forces and high dynamics and generally have a high electrical capacitance. As regards actuator control, the energy consumption of the amplifier is important. PI offers switching amplifier electronics, with which the pulse width of the control signal is modulated (PWM) and the piezo voltage is thereby controlled. This results in an especially high efficiency. In addition, a patented circuitry for energy recovery is integrated: When the piezo actuator is discharged, part of the returning energy is stored in a capacitive store and is made available again for the next charging operation. This permits energy savings of up to 80 % to be realized.

Unlike conventional class D switching amplifiers, PI switching amplifiers for piezo elements are current- and voltage-controlled. This patented system also makes them suitable for applications in active vibration damping. Here, adaptation to the currently required dynamic range is important.

Protection of the Piezo Actuator through Overheating Protection

High-performance electronics can evaluate the signals of a temperature sensor at the piezo. This protects the ceramics against overheating and premature aging.

Thanks to their patented energy recovery system, PI amplifiers only consume approx. 20 % of the power required by a corresponding linear amplifier with the same output power

Power consumption of a piezo amplifier with linear and switched-mode amplifier at the piezo output, capacitive load 1 μF. The measured values clearly show that the pulse width modulated amplifier allows significantly higher dynamics than the classic linear amplifier. The linear amplifier reaches the upper limit of its power consumption at frequencies of up to approx. 700 Hz, the switching amplifier does not reach the limit until far beyond 2 kHz

Charge Amplifier for Piezo Control without Hysteresis

Charge control is based on the principle that the displacement of piezo actuators is much more linear when an electrical charge is applied instead of a voltage. In the first case, hysteresis is only approximately two percent compared with between 10 to 15 percent when using voltage control.

Therefore, charge control can often be used to achieve the required precision even without a servo loop. This enhances the dynamics and reduces the costs. Charge control is not only of advantage in highly dynamic applications but also when it comes to operation at very low frequencies.

As the drift in position of the piezo actuator is not adjusted, charge control does not replace position-controlled operation for tasks where positions need to be maintained for longer periods.

Typical expansion of piezo actuators in relation to the applied voltage (left) and the charge (right). Controlling the applied charge significantly reduces the hysteresis

Position Control: Control Electronics Optimizes System Properties

Closed-loop position control compares the target position with the position measured by the sensor (actual value) and automatically compensates for the nonlinear properties of the piezo actuator, such as hysteresis and drift.

Position control is based on a proportional integral control loop specifically optimized for piezo operation. One or more adjustable notch filters considerably improve usable bandwidth and dynamics because fringe effects due to system-intrinsic resonances are suppressed before they can affect the system stability.

Optimized control algorithms minimize settling times so that the closed-loop piezo positioning systems from PI can achieve a repeatability down to the subnanometer range and bandwidths to 10 kHz.

Block diagram of a typical closed-loop piezo controller

Controller Tuning / Calibration

To optimize system performance, various information about the application is required, such as the desired operating frequency, the size and weight of the payload, or the spring constant of a preload in relation to which the piezo actuator is operated.